We investigate the minimum acquisition time, expressed as the number of image frames, and the minimum number of absorbed photons per pixel required to achieve a predefined contrast resolution in a monochromatic, pixelated image acquisition system at low light intensities (from well below one photon, to several hundred photons per pixel and frame). Primarily we compare systems based on the pixels of

Broadband lasers oscillating in multiple longitudinal modes have potential applications on high resolution interferometer, optical communication and laser spectroscopy. However, the bandwidth of the laser spectrum is limited by the spectral range of laser materials. Here, a broadband multi-longitudinal-mode laser with bandwidth of 22.4 nm at first-order Stokes wavelength has been achieved in a Yb:YAG/YVO

Brain-inspired computing concepts like artificial neural networks have become promising alternatives to classical von Neumann computer architectures. Photonic neural networks target the realizations of neurons, network connections and potentially learning in photonic substrates. Here, we report the development of a nanophotonic hardware platform of fast and energy-efficient photonic neurons via arrays

Superoscillations are making a growing impact on an ever-increasing number of real-world applications, as early theoretical analysis has evolved into wide experimental realisation. This is particularly true in optics: the first application area to have extensively embraced superoscillations, with much recent growth. This review provides a tool for anyone planning to expand the boundaries in an application

This work reports on an investigation of the optical feedback in an InAs/InGaAs passively mode-locked quantum dot (QD) laser epitaxially grown on silicon. Under the stably-resonant optical feedback condition, experiments demonstrate that the radio-frequency linewidth is narrowed whatever the bias voltage applied on the saturable absorber (SA) is; on the other hand, the effective linewidth enhancement

Many optical systems require the correction of the cumulative wavefront error of the system for performance optimization. In ophthalmology the wavefront error of the eye corresponds to the visual defect and can be measured up to high-order aberrations today. Lower orders of the wavefront error are usually corrected with spectacles, contact lenses or refractive surgery. In this paper we apply an optimization

Recent developments in extreme ultraviolet (XUV) and x-ray radiation sources have pushed pulse energies and durations to unprecedented levels that opened up the era of non-linear XUV and x-ray optics. In this quest, laser driven high order harmonic generation sources providing attosecond resolution in the XUV spectral region enabled XUV-pump-XUV-probe experiments, while Free Electron Laser research

The ongoing growth of use-cases for artificial neural networks (ANNs) fuels the search for new, tailor-made ANN-optimized hardware. Neuromorphic (brain-like) computers are among the proposed highly promising solutions, with optical neuromorphic realizations recently receiving increasing research interest. Among these, photonic neuronal models based on vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs)

Surfaces with micro- and nanofeatures were proven to be a superb solution to selectively induce various surface functionalities like anti-bacterial, self- cleaning, friction reduced, hydrophilic or hydrophobic. While there are multiple ways to achieve it, femtosecond (fs) laser-based solutions were shown to offer the best balance between price, throughput and result. Thus, here we will discuss how

All-optical modulation has been regarded as an effective method to solve the electrical bandwidth bottleneck problems existing in the current telecommunication network. By taking advantage of high photothermal conversion of two-dimensional (2D) MXene, a high-performance all-optical modulator is demonstrated. The polarization-dependent all-optical modulator exhibits a broadband intensity modulation

The field of diamond photonics is reviewed, with a focus on recent experimental demonstrations of photonic integrated devices in a single crystal diamond. This field leverages the outstanding material properties of diamond with the aim to establish large-scale integrated photonics for applications in sensing, information and communication technologies, and optomechanics. Accordingly, this review introduces

The debate on tunnelling times have always been full of contradictions and the attoclock experiments that measure tunnelling delays in strong-field ionization are no exception. The current review presents the debate and discussions concerning the studies of tunnelling times based only on the attoclock technique. We review them with their implications and pitfalls identified due to lack of accurate

Optical rogue waves are a class of pulses with extremely large amplitudes, whose probability of occurrence unexpectedly deviates from Gaussian-law statistics. To date, the mechanisms of rogue wave generation are still debated: investigations are under way, exploring the statistics of various pulse dimensions across different physical domains. Although polarization is one of the fundamental parameters